Australian forests are amongst the worlds sixth largest forests with just over 147 million hectares of native forest and around 1.82 million hectares of plantations which is approximately 4% of the global forest estate.
It also has the fourth-largest area of forest in nature conservation reserves.
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Plantations are grown for many reasons ranging from rehabilitation of the land, improvement of water quality, to meeting other environmental and economic objectives.
They also provide a log resource used to make timber products that are both economically viable and environmentally sustainable.
The forestry and forest products industry plantations in Australia produce two-thirds of the nation’s log supply.
$19 billion per year is generated and the industry employs an estimated 120 000 people across all of its sectors.
We use on average, about one cubic metre of timber product a year most; of it comes from Australian plantations.
Around 21% of the nation’s total plantation forest estate is grown in Victoria and Western Australia. New South Wales has 19%, followed by Tasmania with 14% and Queensland with 13%.
Table 1: Total area of plantation forest by state and territory (hectares)
Plantations | ACT | NSW | NT | Qld | SA | Tas | Vic | WA | Australia |
Hardwood (mostly eucalypts) | 0 | 70616 | 23689 | 49446 | 54974 | 199068 | 190986 | 294714 | 883494 |
Softwood (mostly pines) | 9500 | 285702 | 2239 | 188751 | 122871 | 75005 | 219426 | 106662 | 1010155 |
Total* | 9500 | 359139 | 25928 | 240305 | 178301 | 274173 | 411876 | 403681 | 1902903 |
* Includes mixed hardwood and softwoods and plantations for which species were not reported |
Australian State Governments owned the majority of plantations up until the 1990s.
Over the years this has gradually changed with large sections of plantations being sold and established by the private sector.
70% of the total forest in Australia is privately managed, including on private freehold, leasehold and Indigenous-managed lands.
For more information on Australian Forest Plantation visit the websites listed below:
Fig 1a Radiata Pine |
Fig 1b Blue Gums |
Fig 1c Native Hard Wood |
Plantation forestry growers commonly use a number of Softwood species due to their ability to grow well in a broad range of sites.
The wood they produce is suitable for many purposes and Radiata Pine is the main softwood plantation species in Australia.
Maritime Pine is also planted widely in southern Western Australia. Caribbean Pine and Slash Pine are planted in tropical and sub-tropical regions.
The only Australian native pine planted for wood production in Australia is Hoop Pine. It also grows naturally in rainforests.
Pine timber grows fast, is easy to work with and is cheaper than most hardwood timbers.
House structures and a wide range of household furniture are manufactured from Australian plantation pine.
Fig 2 Soft wood house structure
Eucalyptus species make up more than 90% of the hardwood plantations grown in Australia, particularly Tasmanian Blue Gum, which are almost two-thirds of the total.
A number of other commonly planted Eucalypts are:
Also closely related to the Eucalypt species and grown in Australia is the Corymbia species:
There are many similarities between forest plantations, and agricultural crop management.
As with agriculture, forestry chooses a species depending on the required product and site suitability.
Sites are then prepared mostly by mechanical means and crops are established and tended to with the aim for efficient production.
When trees are small pesticides that were first used in the agricultural industry are used to reduce weeds and fertilisers are sometimes applied to enhance tree growth.
Growing, tending to and harvesting a single crop of trees is referred to as a rotation.
Hardwoods | Region | Main species | Main products |
Tropical – high rainfall | Mangium | ||
Sub-tropical –medium rainfall | Flooded Gum, Dunns White Gum, Gympie Messmate | Paper products | |
Temperate –medium-to-high rainfall | Blue Gum, Shining Gum | ||
Tropical – high rainfall | African Mahogany, Teak, some native species | Sawn timber for furniture, flooring and other high-value uses | |
Several regions | Various Eucalypts | Sawn timber for building and furniture | |
Softwoods | Temperate – medium rainfall | Radiata Pine | Sawn timber for building, joinery, furniture, plywood, other high-value uses, posts and poles. Residues are used for paper, particleboard and other panels |
Tropical, sub tropical – medium rainfall | Caribbean Pine, Slash Pine and Hybrids | ||
Temperate – low-to-medium rainfall | Maritime Pine | ||
Tropical, sub-tropical – high rainfall | Hoop Pine |
Chart 2 Softwood plantations in Australia are mainly managed for production of sawlogs.
They are a grown in a rotation of 30 years or more (50 years for hoop pine).
At specified times, thinning operations are undertaken to remove the smallest and most poorly formed trees, leaving the best trees to grow as sawlog.
Pruning is undertaken when a tree is between 4-6 years of age by removing lower branches: this helps the lower part of tree to produce good clear wood improving sawlog quality.
Once the trees are harvested the logs are processed in sawmills and a wide range of products made and used throughout Australia.
The produce from thinnings is used in things such as fence posts and poles. The residue or poorer quality trees are chipped and used to make fibreboard, particleboard and paper products.
Fig 3 Chip truck being loaded by chipper
Eucalyptus and Tasmanian Blue gum hardwood plantations are mainly managed for production of pulpwood to make suitable paper for printing and writing materials.
The pulpwood from some softwood is in general used for packaging and other lower-quality papers.
Plantations of Eucalypt and Acacia pulpwood can be grown in rotations as short as 10 years.
A small percentage of hardwood plantations are managed over rotations of 20 years or more for production of products including high quality furniture, polished flooring.
As the supply from the native forest is diminishing, the interest in growing hardwood sawlogs in plantations is increasing.
Video 1 - TigerCat 2009 product video
The production and supply of timber waste products for electricity and ethanol.
Coal used for electricity generation is already being replaced by some of the plantation timber residues.
Fuel pellet production and generating energy projects are being developed from plantation biomass.